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- Title
Role of interface intermixing on perpendicular magnetic anisotropy of cobalt-iron-boron alloy.
- Authors
Mahendra, Anmol; Murmu, Peter P.; Acharya, Susant Kumar; Islam, Atif; Fiedler, Holger; Gupta, Prasanth; Granville, Simon; Kennedy, John
- Abstract
Perpendicular magnetic anisotropy (PMA) is crucial in magnetic tunnel junctions (MTJs) for next-generation devices such as non-volatile memory devices–magnetic random-access-memory, spin–orbit-torque-based devices, and magnetic sensors. Precise tuning of PMA requires highly controllable modification methods compatible with existing electronic device fabrication technology. In this study, we report on the effects of low-energy (30 keV) Ar and Ne ion irradiation on the PMA of cobalt-iron-boron alloy (CoFeB) based thin films for fluences between 1 × 1013 ions·cm−2 and 1 × 1015 ions·cm−2 and resultant displacement per atom (DPA) of 0.13–13 and 0.32–32 for Ne and Ar ions, respectively. Our results showed that ion irradiation reduced the PMA in CoFeB layer. The effective anisotropy energy, Keff ≈ 64 kJ·m−3 for un-irradiated CoFeB stacks reduced to ≈ 50 kJ·m−3 and ≈ 30 kJ·m−3 for stacks irradiated with 1 × 1013 Ne·cm−2 and with 1 × 1013 Ar·cm−2, respectively. Monte Carlo-based simulations for ion irradiation showed significant intermixing of interface layers upon irradiation leading to decrease in Fe–O and Fe/Co–W orbital hybridization, which reduced the PMA. Furthermore, intermixing of Fe/Co with W resulted in the formation of paramagnetic phases, which decreased the saturation magnetization. Our study shows that ion irradiation is an effective method for tuning PMA in MTJs, and the extent of change in PMA can be directly correlated with the DPA.
- Subjects
MAGNETIC tunnelling; MAGNETIC anisotropy; SPIN-orbit interactions; ORBITAL hybridization; IRRADIATION; PERPENDICULAR magnetic anisotropy; MAGNETIC sensors; THIN films; ALLOYS
- Publication
Applied Physics A: Materials Science & Processing, 2023, Vol 129, Issue 7, p1
- ISSN
0947-8396
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.1007/s00339-023-06759-y